


Spectral Speculations

by SleepyJanetje



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:54:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28344981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SleepyJanetje/pseuds/SleepyJanetje
Summary: A collection of observations from the show "Julie and the Phantoms" on Netflix that lead to headcanons about the JatP universe and speculation on what could happen. Chapter titles are about each topic. Warning - you could catch a case of plot bunnies?
Kudos: 6





	1. Caleb Covington

**Author's Note:**

> I've never posted anything on Ao3 so please forgive the crude formatting, lack of any story, and edits as I go. I watched the show 6 times in the last 6 days (at the time of writing), and the story and the universe of JatP inspire me.

Caleb Covington information and season 2 speculation

**About Caleb Covington:**

  1. Magician that “died a horrible death doing a magic trick”
  2. His “Clubhouse” is only able to be seen if you are invited
  3. Has the ability to make himself and ghosts in his club be visible to lifers
  4. Has the power to bind ghosts to his club, and place a stamp-curse upon other ghosts which causes a painful jolt which drains the ghosts of their energy.
  5. He owns Willie’s soul.
  6. He can transport ghosts who have the stamp into his club and can compel them on stage.
  7. In song “Got nothing to lose” mentions a wise man saying “Covington, I got an offer that you can’t refuse” 
    1. This is very likely a reference to Mephistophelian bargain or “deal with the devil” where a figure offers diabolical favor in exchange for the person’s soul. 
      1. So Caleb was offered a deal and also offers deals (not surprised demons follow the Multi-level-marketing model).
      2. He likely not the big devil figure here but he probably works for them.
      3. He offers deals to both lifers and ghosts. Hollywood Ghost Club is the example.
  8. Has the ability to possess humans



The last scene of season 1 sets Caleb up to be the “big bad” of season 2 (and maybe beyond).

**Speculation on why he is possessing Nick:**

  1. Julie is a lifer who can see the ghost band and make the band visible while performing with them, so he is investigating what makes her different.
  2. He will manipulate the situation to make Luke really jealous and will break up the band 
    1. Nick is in the music program too, so we could see another class project to work on involving music this time - we have already seen a shade of Luke being jealous when she doesn’t ditch school to dance with Nick. How will he feel when she has to work with Nick involving music? And if she is making music with NiCaleb will Caleb get some energy from her musical power?
    2. Pulling a Yoko Ono type thing - maybe trying to get Julie to get an ego, etc
  3. Teaming up with Carrie Wilson. It’s a bit of a trope but after Julie still picks the band after some rocky bits possibly mentioned earlier, NiCaleb can find a pawn in leveraging Carrie Wilson’s jealousy.
  4. Possibly harming the band studio space/instruments, see a later chapter on instruments referring to that headcanon. 



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Speculate about Caleb Covington background, motivations, and plots in the comments below.


	2. Bobby | Trevor Wilson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Speculations about the rhythm guitarist of Sunset Curve.

Here is the article that Julie brought up on her phone:

 _Sunset Curve: A Hollywood Tragedy_ dated July 29, 1995.

Last week the music industry lost an up and coming band that would have taken the world by storm and topped the charts. Sunset Curve was a local band out of Hollywood having sold out its showcase on Saturday [note: that's July 22, 1995]. Unfortunately, the band never made it to the stage.

Three of its members, Luke, Alex, and Reggie tragically died when they ate bad street hot dogs. It was supposed to be their biggest night, opening live at The Orpheum Theatre on the Sunset Strip. They were only 17. **There was a surviving band member, Bobby, but no one has been able to track him down and talk to him about his friends dying that fateful night.** The band had a demo with four songs: Now or Never, Late Last Night, Lakeside Reflection, and In Your Starlight. They were a young and talented group that would have left their mark on the music scene. Rest in Peace, Sunset Curve.

* * *

So what happened to Bobby? 

Deep Speculation: Bobby made a Mephistophelian/Faustian bargain. Maybe he didn’t count on it killing his bandmates. He assumed his rise to stardom would include the guys but the deal maker (Caleb?) is crafty and made the words twist. Usually in the bargain there is a sacrifice or some sort of unseen drawback. I believe the showrunners made his reactions to his haunting and seeing Julie and the Phantoms at the Orpheum as ambiguous - definite shock but open to other interpretations. He was 17 too. His story could be sympathetic or devious.

Is Robby being possessed by Trevor Wilson? Who knows?

This next part is absolutely speculative headcanon: 

Julie’s current home used to belong to Bobby’s family. If Bobby became the star Trevor Wilson (to either separate from a painful past of Sunset curve or Faustian deal with Caleb-type). If we go with Faustian deal, he becomes a different entity/Dr.Jekell&Hyde-type corporate sell out - the machine side uses Luke’s songs for the success. Anyway, like a typical success - he buys his parents a house. They keep the previous house (that’s where their son grew up, learned music etc) but later Bobby/or his parents sell it to Rose and family. Rose and Julie "rocked out at the top of their lungs" to Trevor Wilson songs. Julie and Carrie Wilson were friends at one point. So Julie's mom Rose would know Trevor Wilson.

Evidence to support Bobby house theory - House/Studio do not belong to Reggie or Luke’s families. Not sure what a photographer in California makes but that very nice house is in a LA suberb and is in a good school neighborhood (has a competitive music program as well as multiple state championship titles from like 1968 to 1997, then 2011 and presumably on to 2020) and it’s all on Ray’s one income - Julie’s dad is likely photographer on retainer at a real estate firm or independently wealthy. Or they got the house on the cheap because a friend was selling it (studio untouched because of bad memories, etc)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you notice when singing "Unsaid Emily", Bobby's suspender is caught on guitar when they are doing the "ah ah ah" vocal break? Kinda funny. Let me know your Bobby | Trevor Wilson speculations here.


	3. Instruments and music as parts of your soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A chapter about instruments and being heard. This goes a little off the deep end.

In episode 2, in the song "Band is back", Luke summons his acoustic guitar. And later Reggie shows he can summon his bass in Julie's room. Luke remarks **"It's like I always thought, our instruments are attached to our souls."**

There is some belief out there that ghosts leave a resonance or emotion on items that were close to them - whether it’s the physical stones of a building or sentimental items. Sunset Curve's instruments were left in the loft of the studio, which later became Julie's mom's studio where she played/sang/wrote songs with her two children. 

  1. The guys are tied to their instruments. The instruments were left in the studio loft. They can be heard when playing music with their instruments.
  2. Julie's mom played on the piano in the studio. 
  3. That shared music space with the Sunset Curve's instruments while in the studio while Julie's mom made music. Could this have allowed a blending or amplification of ghost music powers?



So expanding further on those points:

  1. If the instruments are tying them to this place of existence, Caleb could "kidnap" the guys or cause harm to them using their instruments. This would be a minor scheme, and give them a fright but ultimately unsuccessful because Julie's bond with the band is stronger than that. 
    1. If Luke is singing "Unsaid Emily" while his parents read the lyrics, could they have heard his voice a little? Sort of how in movies they have a voiceover when reading a letter. It would be poignant, but I know this theory is unlikely here. But it's a nice thought.
  2. Julie's mom is playing the piano/keyboard when the band is performing while Julie is not at the piano. I know it's crazy and in behind the scenes when they are coming up with the band's placement during songs, Reggie is playing the keyboard - but unless it's shown in actual, I'll keep believing. If her mom is a ghost maybe she could be heard but not seen as well.
  3. The Colina family have ghost sensitivity linked to that studio music place because the band played there and the mom played there, and the instruments are still there. Julie is most sensitive because she and her mom spent the most time there together making music. Carlos apparently also sang in the studio with his mom and he knows the band are ghosts - so he may be able to see them eventually. I'm a fan of fun pranks and shenanigans with Reggie. Ray would be the last in the family to see them - his passion is photography but he also spent time in the studio watching his family. I don't think Tia Victoria will ever see the ghosts but she will probably cause small problems - especially when Carlos and Reggie do shenanigans. 



**Author's Note:**

> More to come on each of the characters in the tags, and deeper dives into recurring iconography: music instruments, butterflies, dahlias, Rose(s), crosses, and unfinished business. I love a deep dive into a world. You can find me on [ Tumblr ](https://vlietfooted.tumblr.com/) and talk some JatP.


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